“Oh, that makes sense, I guess.” She sighed and leaned back against the squabs.
The carriage swayed gently as they got on their way. Malcolm stayed silent. He didn’t want to spook her, but he wished he could tuck her next to him and drown in her delicious scent. He wished they were eloping, then he could make love to her the entire way to Gretna Green. Wait. “How old are you, Adeline?”
“Twenty-three.”
He relaxed. She wasn’t so young that she needed her father’s permission anymore. This was good because once he convinced her to marry him, he wanted it done as soon as possible.
“How old are you?” she asked.
“Twenty-seven.”
“Hmmm. And why haven’t you married before?”
Her direct question had his lips twitching with a silent laugh. No one could accuse Adeline of being coy. Unfortunately, the reason he was not married was a sad tale. One that he tried to forget most of the time. But as he looked across at her inquisitive expression, the delicate arch of one eyebrow raised in challenge, he found himself doing something he didn’t often do: speaking about his past.
“I was engaged once, five years ago, to the daughter of a captain who I sailed under for a time. I thought she would be the perfect wife because she already knew what the life of a navy officer entailed. She was vibrant and audacious, and I couldn’t believe she had agreed to be my wife.”
“What happened?”
“During our engagement, I was away for six months, and she became pregnant with another man’s baby. They ran away together in secret, but on their way to Gretna Green, there was a terrible carriage accident, and they both died.”
Adeline pursed her lips together in a thin line of disapproval. “It sounds like she got her comeuppance.”
Her approval of Bridget’s untimely end surprised him. “I thought you didn’t believe in fate?”
“I don’t.” She huffed. “But I do believe that one’s actions have consequences. And it is satisfying to know that bad people receive bad consequences. That isn’t always the way of it.”
“It’s a bit bloodthirsty, but I agree that plenty of bad people go unpunished. In this case, once I made my peace with her betrayal and her death, I realized that it was her secrets that led to her bad decisions. I despise secrets. My brother, Paul, also kept big secrets. He had a gambling problem that he kept hidden from me until his debts became too overwhelming. He chose to take his own life instead of facing the consequences.”
“That’s terrible, Kingsbury.”
He nodded. It was an old hurt, scarred over along with all the others. “Please call me Malcolm. It’s only fair since you gave me permission to call you Adeline. Besides, I’m still not entirely comfortable with my title.”
“I don’t know if I should be so familiar with my kidnapper.”
“Adeline, you came willingly. You know this is the right decision.”
“You didn’t really give me a choice, did you? Everything with you has been a manipulation.” She folded her arms across her chest.
“I swear to you our interactions have not been. It is true I reconnected with your brother to find out if your father had the artifacts. But meeting you has been the loveliest surprise. You have absolutely enchanted me.”
Her mouth formed anO, and her mulish expression softened. This lady had a secret soft spot for sentiment; he tucked that bit of information away for later.
But then she sighed. “I can’t decide if I believe any of your pretty words, Malcolm.”
Hearing his name rolling off her tongue was a small victory, even if she didn’t entirely trust him yet.
A few moments later, she said, “Everyone calls me Addy.”
“That’s a shame, Adeline is such a pretty name. I shall stick with Adeline.”
A small smile played across her lips. “Honestly, I prefer it. But it seems people, and by that, I mean my brother, always want to shorten it.”
“Come to think of it, George always called me Mal when we were in school.”
She shrugged. “My friends call me Addy, too.”
“Why don’t you tell them you prefer Adeline?”
